Saturday, August 21, 2010

Random Pics and Reflections from New York City

I have time to kill while I sit at JFK waiting to board my flight home, so avoiding boredom by reviewing pics and uploading some random stuff. This pic is from my first visit to the Strand book store, which I wrote about here. These are the awesome $1 racks outside. There must have been 20 of them. Inside the store... it's HUGE!

Maybe half of their Picasso selection (oh, heaven!):

Owl on the roof of the Strand... I sat down in one of 4 chairs in front of a window on the 2nd floor (ah, slight breeze on a hot day!) and noticed this guy. I thought he said, "Whoooo's that?" but it might have been my imagination.

Outside the Strand, a lady backed into this bike while the crowd of $1 book rack browsers watched on. She finished parking then got out of her car and walked away. No one said a thing. Arghhhh!!! I wasn't going to get involved while travelling, but jeez, people!

If you get really broke on vacation... and you set a daily budget then continually blow it... when you are low on cash... or just want to save your money for something else, you can get a lot of food for $20 if you find a real grocery store. OK, I liked, this was $22.90, but still, not bad. I am one of those lucky people who can enjoy cereal with water, so if my hotel room doesn't have a fridge, it's still no worries for me. I just pick up a plastic spoon, and for my first dose of cereal I buy one of those little single-serving cereals in a cup, and change the cup.

Birds on a wire. I love old peeling paint like this.

Section of the Berlin Wall in Manhattan. I wrote about finding it here.

They say there is a first time for everything! I was so surprised, these guys will usually do anything for a buck. I think, perhaps, he's an employee, not an entrepreneur. Or, if he's the latter, he won't last long...

Gee, that mannequin seems almost lifelike! The one on the left, the one with the head, of course. Oh, yeah, it's a DJ performing in the shop window. I think it was an Armani store or something.

Is it me, or does something look off kilter here? My meal wasn't amazing enough here to warrant a write up, but it was fun trying to keep everything on the table, just a week slant there...

Cute kid with blue-haired doll on the bus. I am a big fan of Manhattan busses, even though many (including The Pod's survival guide, boo!) say no one takes them. Well, that's ok, because it means that there are virtually no tourists on them, just locals, and rarely crowded. In 5 trips to NYC I think I've only stood on a bus twice. And they are air conditioned. And you get to see where you are going!!! It's easy for Manhattan to feel like little islands when you poke your head up like a mole from only using the subway. I use both. Busses are especially handy cross-town, as most subway lines run north/south only (due to the fact that they were all separate independent lines at one time), and can save time. But not always, if they go through a really conjested area. Study up and give them a try. Get a transit map that includes busses and subways, and you are all set.

While waiting for said bus, I noticed the metal disk attached to the hood of this taxi. It is a permit or something. I guess that prevents someone from painting their car yellow and sticking a toy store taxi sign on the roof....

OK, there was one really, really rainy day when I was in town. I had a good laugh when I came up behind these two ladies (locals, I believe) who had improvised some rain gear....

Cafe I was "stuck" in when the rainstorm hit. I just stayed and talked to the molecular biologist who was at the table next to me. I kid you not. That's the second one I've met this year. These boys are SMART!

The cafe was great, so I'll have to look up the name and mention it properly, but it also made me laugh. You'd think it was a movie scene where Apple had gone a little heavy on the product placement. When I arrived, I think there were 6 or 7 Apple laptops in use on about 12 tables. In fact, the starting point of my conversation with my smart scientist was when he opened a pc laptop... lol....

What eventually happens to a bike left locked to a post too long, I guess...

Inside of a bathroom door. Don't ask me why. I have no idea.

OK, weird thing to find in an art store, at least for me. You can buy the sneakers in your own size, or the size of your loved one, then paint. Heh.

I have no idea what this lady had going on, but it was definitely worth of an odd stuff picture snag....

This guy was pulling his concession down a lane of traffic, next to the parked cars, outside Grand Central Station.

Excuse me ma'am... there appears to be a tree growing out of your backpack.... ??? !!!

The Bag Man is my friend. This store is the craziest store to go into (I dare you!). I go in when I need cheap luggage to take extra shopping home (I often bring just a carry-on to NYC, then get a cheap bag to get me home, which I then give to charity). This time my bag - on wheels - cost me $10.99. 34th Street and 8th Avenue, right by the subway.Had an interesting chat with a local when I took a pic of this building. She was confounded as to why so many tourists took pics of it... I didn't really have an answer, other than "it's different".... to which she said, "It is definitely that"... I asked if she meant that in a bad way, and she said not necessarily. Anyways, it was cool.

Ever wonder how the really nice shops get the pretty leaves in their windows?

Closing up shop for the day...

I wonder what the puppy ordered for dinner....

Almost time to board my plane, so that's it for this round. More to come, I'm sure...

1 comment:

Anonymous
said...

Roberta ...

I live in NYC and have to agree with you about Strand Books (it's OK to just call it "The Strand" ... we'll know what you mean.) Next time, take the elevator to the third floor and pay a visit to the Rare Book Room. Worth the trip just to sight-see in that department. Very quiet and smells like old paper and leather ... way cool!